


Life is a Shipwreck, but We Must Not Forget to Sing in the Lifeboats

by Nixta



Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling, Naruto
Genre: F/M, Female Harry Potter, M/M, Multi
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-04-02
Updated: 2017-09-03
Packaged: 2018-10-13 20:22:48
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 6
Words: 13,916
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10521156
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Nixta/pseuds/Nixta
Summary: Sakura Haruno is all well and good, but what would happen if she was replaced with someone with a bit more bite? What would happen if someone noticed the abuse to the Potter Heir and did something about it? What would happen if the ninja world was portrayed in a realistic way?





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> **Disclaimer: all characters and worlds in this story belong their creators, this story was made for personal enjoyment not for profit.**

Appearances meant nothing.

This was something that Azalea Dorea Potter – the only child of Lord James Potter and Lady Lily Potter nee Evans, and as such the sole Heiress of the Potter estate – had known from an early age.

Azalea had only had limited interaction with the outside world since she arrived at 4 Privet Drive, her Aunt Petunia had said that this was so she could not infect 'good ordinary people' with her 'Taint'. Azalea did not know what this Taint was, maybe it was something that could not be seen, but by the time she could go to school she was convinced that she must be tainted in some way...and school only reinforced that idea.

The other children did not want to play with her, called her mean names and avoided her at all other times. The teachers looked at her with distrust and suspicion, punished her for things she had not done, and excluded her from group activities. And people with the Taint must not be allowed to do well in school, because when she attempted to improve everyone's opinion of her by studying hard and getting good scores on her end of year tests, her teacher has scowled at her and muttered about 'bad ones' under her breath. Worse, her Uncle Vernon had beaten her black, blue and bloody for 'cheating', and had thrown her into her cupboard once she lost consciousness. That door had been locked and had not opened since that day. 

Azalea had used the limited time she was conscious to make a list of rules so this would never happen to her again. According to these Rules, created from the expectations of her relatives, one with the Taint must not be idle (which meant chores in all available free time), must not be heard (even when being beaten), must not be seen (unless requested for), must not do well in school (pretending to be a normal person was absolutely forbidden), and must not have the comforts of a normal person (this meant no good food, no good clothes, no nice bed, no hospital check-ups or dentist and optician appointments). 

Azalea had hoped for a swift return to her old routine: Being woken up by her Aunt Petunia at six o'clock in the morning, and thrown into the bathroom to use the toilet and have a quick shower with cold water. Then to quickly get dressed and make breakfast for her Aunt and Uncle... then put on the washer, fetch the mail, dust all surfaces in the house, wake and make breakfast for her cousin, tidy his room, wash the pots, and hopefully receive a glass of water and an apple for breakfast if she had done the housework to her Aunt's exacting standards. Before school she had returned to her cupboard at this point to allow her Aunt to look after Dudley without distraction. She would then be let out at half past three to hoover the entire house, mop the kitchen floor, clean the windows, hang up the dried washing, and make dinner ready for when Uncle Vernon returned from work. After washing the pots and returning the kitchen once more to a pristine condition she would be given a glass of water and an apple and told to return to her cupboard. If it had been a good day for her Uncle, she would fall asleep and wake up to begin the routine again. If it had been a bad day...she would be dragged from the cupboard by her hair, and her intoxicated Uncle would beat her until she threw up what little she had eaten that day, before allowing her to crawl back into her cupboard. Her starting school only filled that gap in the middle of the day, and gave her a sandwich in a second-hand lunch box to keep up appearances.

Yet all Azalea's hazy recollections in the brief periods she was awake showed that the cupboard door remain locked, and her routine was broken...all because of a report card.

It must be explained that it is impossible for someone to survive on such meagre resources as Azalea did, and for all their cruelty the adult Dursleys were not completely stupid. They were aware that rags for clothes, an emancipated frame, or bruises in obvious places would draw negative attention to their family, that rumours of bad genetics from a whore mother and a drunk father could not cover up. So Azalea was clothed in cheap clothes from a charity shop, given food with some nutritional value, and only bruised in places that her clothes could cover up. The Dursleys also relied on the strange power Azalea had – as much as they hated and feared her for it – to fix her when they went to far. Like the time Uncle Vernon broke her leg and blinded her in one eye and she was healed by the next day, or the time Aunt Petunia went on a spa week with some of Uncle Vernon's colleague's wives and he had forgotten to feed Azalea even once, Azalea was the same as when her Aunt left...though repeated testing had showed that this could not be done regularly. At all previous times the power had risen to the challenge, and the Dursleys had expected it to do so again, when they left Azalea injured and did not leave her any food or water for over three weeks.

Unfortunately for them that power was not limitless, and though they didn't know it Azalea was dying.

And it was that fact that resulted in the front door of 4 Privet Drive being kicked down by 4ft tall creatures with long hands, feet and noses, sallow rough skin, sharp teeth, and vicious expressions.

Petunia Dursley was taken captive and disappeared in a flash of light. Vernon Dursley was killed when he attempted to fight the attackers. Dudley Dursley was at school, causing trouble, and at the moment unknowing that he would never see his family again. And Azalea Potter was gently gathered into strong arms and lifted out of her cupboard, she also disappeared in a flash of light and she also would never see the Dursleys again.


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> **Disclaimer: all character belong to their creators. This work is for personal enjoyment, not profit.**

The office of Ragnarok – Chief Goblin of the Rockhigh Clan and the High Director of Gringotts Bank – was not what most wizards would expect. Sure the walls of the office were lined with functional bladed weaponry and colourful tapestries showing many gruesome scenes, and the desk was made of a hard chestnut wood with exquisite carvings to show off goblin talents (also of gruesome scenes) and large enough to be intimidating. However the walls were plastered and painted a warm cream, rather than the marble or stone that would be expected. And there was no fireplace, instead the large room was heated by spells under the floor. And the area was lit by floating light crystals.

The Goblins may have played to the wizarding trends in their bank, but in their private residences they laughed at the backwater Wizarding Society and lived in comfort.

However Ragnarok was not enjoying these comforts at the moment, instead he was contemplating who to punish for the circumstances that lead to the Goblin Horde breaking their oath.

Nearly seven years ago a pregnant witch had stormed their bank, demanded an audience, and stared down the Manager Goblin on the bank floor until her demand was granted out of curiosity. She had wanted her child protected, and rather than plead with them for her unborn child she had laid down a cold hard deal, that had made some question if she had some Goblin blood in her (far far far back).

The basics of the deal were simple: if she and her husband died Gringotts would become the Financial Guardians of their child, responsible for its continued financial status until the child was of age.

Any other witch would have been laughed out laughed out of Gringotts, but this was the Lady Lily Potter nee Evans. She had her husband's signed permission in blood to do what she will with the Potter Vaults, and the Potter Vaults were significant. The interest they produced per annum was enough to fill three lesser vaults, and all the Goblins had to do was keep the Vaults open rather than freeze them upon the Potter's deaths.

Of course it was more complicated than that. As the financial guardians of the Potter Heir – as appointed by the Lord and Lady Potter – no one would be able to interfere in the Potter financial affairs. However, the Goblins would have a Duty of Care towards the young Potter Heir. If the Vaults were ever threatened by the potential death of the Potter Heir it was the Duty of the Goblin Nation – via Gringotts – to secure the Vaults by securing the child. This Duty was absolute and could not be contested.

While still in the womb the Potter Heir was imbued with powerful protection and monitoring charms, so the Goblins could keep their oath. The Goblins warned that the fidilious charm would interfere with these charms, but the Potters accepted the risks and were killed for it. Then the Potter child was moved elsewhere by Albus Dumbledore – Chief Warlock, etc, etc – and those charms registered no harm to the child, until every alarm in Ragnarok's office went off as she almost died the day before.

A Goblin Hit Squad was instantly sent to bring the child to safety, and she had been sequestered in the healers chambers ever since.

A sharp knock on the elaborate chestnut wood caused Ragnarok to look up and growl an “enter!”

The door swiftly opened to reveal an elderly Goblin standing stooped with a walking stick. The Goblin in question wore a simple brown tunic with black leggings and simple dragon skin hide boots. He looked every inch a vulnerable old Goblin, but Ragnarok was not fooled. This particular Goblin had looked exactly the same one hundred and eighty years before when he had instructed Ragnarok in the art of war, and had swiftly broken down all the then young and arrogant Goblin's defences, winning the match in under three minutes. The last match Ragnarok had had with this Goblin elder had ended in Ragnarok's defeat, and that was a mere two years ago.

“ _Drak_ (Boy).” The Goblin elder said in a natural snarling tone.

“Elder” was the semi-deferential reply.

The Goblin Elder moved to one of the chairs in front of the desk and sat down. If Ragnarok was any less strong willed _he_ would have been intimidated.

Once the Elder was seated, sharp and fierce black eyes fixed on Ragnarok. “The Potter Heiress is severely malnourished, her bones brittle, her eyesight is under-developed and her organs are near shutting down from the strain. Her jaw is dislocated. Her throat is bruised from strangulation. Her left collarbone is broken. Nine ribs are broken, the others are bruised. Her left shoulder is dislocated and her right wrist is shattered, there are hairline fractures all through her arms. Three vertebrae in her lower back show fractures. There are open wounds from what appears to be a belt buckle across her back, buttocks and thighs. There are fractures and hairline fractures through her legs. Mass internal bleeding and severe blood-loss. She also has a horcreaux in that scar on her forehead from that self-proclaimed dark lord. The protection Lady Potter gave her in that sacrificial ritual she conducted is all that was keeping her alive, and that will run out within hours.”

Ragnarok released an outraged hiss. If it had been any other but his teacher he would have been tempted to skewer the Goblin. That was probably why the Elder Goblin had been sent to deliver the news, he certainly wasn't past whacking a badly behaved drak over the head with that walking stick of his, even if that drak was the four-hundred-and-twenty-six year old Chief Goblin.

“Has healing begun?” Ragnarok demanded.

The Elder Goblin nodded, “the Potter Heiress has been put in status while the horcreaux is removed so it cannot taint the healing, once the horcreaux is destroyed she will be healed to the fullest extent before she is brought out of status. The Goblin Hoard will put the entirety of our skill behind this endeavour. Nothing less would redeem our honour.”

“I agree” Ragnarok snapped, “our monitoring charms failed. Our ward has been severely injured as a result of our negligence.” Ragnarok poured a glass of Blood Brandy and passed it to the Elder, gaining an approving hum. He then poured himself one and sipped the liquid, appreciating the burn on the back of his throat. “How is progress in finding guardians for the Potter Heiress?”

The Elder also took a sip, “there are many relatives on the Potter side, but those fickle wizarding politics would see her removed and placed with a Death Eater. We have however found kin on the mother's side.”

Ragnarok snatched the sheet of parchment the Elder offered, and studied the lines drawn in the Potter Heiress' own blood: A blood inheritance potion and ritual must have been used to get accurate and speedy results. That irritating dark lord and the muggle World Wars had succeeded in wiping out any potential kin for three generations, however Lady Potter's maternal Grandfather was one of four siblings, and one of those siblings had surviving descendants.

Where they were located however was a problem.

_Kakusare ta Kuni._ Otherwise known as the Hidden Countries. Or to the Magical Kind: The Tribal Isle.

Magic was not the only malleable energy on Earth, there was another energy called Chakra that was heavier and so required concentration to manipulate rather than magic that just required high emotions.

Naturally this difference resulted in a war between the two empowered races. The Chakra-users were winning as their energy was much more suited to combat, until the Magic-users figured out how to harness Mother Earth herself and bound all beings with Chakra to a single Isle off the coast of Asia, which was then hidden behind layers and layers of wards. No being with Chakra could pass these wards.

“How did an inhabitant of the Tribal Isle get out?” Ragnarok questioned. Those wards had cost the lives of over a thousand wizards, they should have been infallible.

“We may never know” the Elder stated, “but there is no place safer for the Potter Heiress. The wizards would never expected to be in the Tribal Isle.”

Ragnarok nearly choked in shock, “a magic user in the Tribal Isle, you cannot be serious.”

The Elder watched Ragnarok with assessing eyes, “she cannot stay here.”

“I am not suggesting that she remain in Gringotts -” Ragnarok began to dismiss, but was cut off by his impatient elder.

“ _She is the strongest magic-user in the world!_ It is luck itself that she is alive at all.” The Elder gritted out.

Ragnarok forced himself to calm down, this unmeant oath-breaking was making his blood boil, and as the Goblin Chief his personal honour was also tarnished by this matter. The resolution had to be perfect, and the Tribal Isle could be described as barbaric.

When the Ministries of Magic first rose one of the things they did was check if the ancient myth of Chakra-users was true. And once they realised that the myths _were_ true, it was checked that the wards were still working and how far the civilisation of the Chakra-users had risen. The wards were fine by all examination. The civilisation on the other hand was that of large families called Clans at war with one another, the only towns in existence were built around the Daimyo of territories, the rest of the populace was scattered in simple villages and farmsteads. Another assessment was conducted only two-hundred years ago, and nothing had changed. This warring status led to the designation of the Hidden Countries as the Tribal Isle.

“Her power is not in question” Ragnarok said, forcing the irritation out of his tone of voice.

The Elder glared, daring Ragnarok to lose his temper, “the healers did a thorough assessment. No magic-user with her level of power has ever survived, their bodies cannot handle it, and they wither and die. The chakra-user in her bloodline saved her life, it gave her magical core a template on which to work to allow for her survival. She has coils like a chakra-user, and her internal energy is thick like a chakra-user, but its all magic.”

“Show me that report.” Ragnarok demanded.

The parchment scroll was handed over and Ragnarok practically inhaled the information on the scroll, his mind amazed at what he read there.

The Potter Heiress did indeed have coils throughout her body made of magic, and that magic was indeed thick. As a magic-user had natural increases in the size of their core at five, thirteen, seventeen, twenty-one, and the last at twenty-five, the Potter Heiress would only increase in power. It had already been judged that how her magic had formed would prevent her from using most of the magic spells and a wand was out of the question, because her power would overload them. The Head Goblin Healer had theorised that over time the Potter Heiress may become the first ever wand-less magic-user. However for the moment her magic was mimicking chakra near perfectly, it would not grow with use as a chakra-user's would but she would be able to pull on Mother Earth as a magic-user could so that should compensate. She should be able to use runes just like any other magic-user.

With a start, Ragnarok realised that he had actually been considering sending the Potter Heiress to the Tribal Isle.

“If it looks like chakra and reacts like chakra...”the Elder began, then trailed off leadingly. As if he knew what Ragnarok was thinking.

“...what wizard would believe that it wasn't chakra” Ragnarok finished. “The wards will hide her magical signature, how her magic was formed will hide what she is, and her chakra-user kin will get rid of any doubters by their presence. No Death Eaters or Ministry Personnel will find her. It is perhaps the safest place for her now.”

“Indeed” the Elder smirked, and drained his glass in one victorious gulp.

Ragnarok nearly sneered at the smug look gracing his teacher's face, then gave a vicious grin as retribution came to him.

“And as it is a matter of incredible importance that shall restore the honour of the Goblin Hoard, we shall only assign our best to the task of escorting the Potter Heiress to her kin.” Ragnarok would be purring the words if the Goblin vocal cords allowed for such a sound. “The Goblin chosen as Escort shall have to be wise, courageous, diplomatic and skilled in combat. Naturally, I believe that due to your apparent investment in this case, that it should be you, Honoured Elder.”

The Elder looked shocked. “I'm too old to go traipsing across country, they don't even have roads for Merlin's sake.”

“Nonsense, you are barely over one-thousand years old” Ragnarok murmured in a fake sweet voice. “There is no one I would trust with this more. I suggest that you pack for your journey, Elder.”

The dismissal in hid tone was clear, and the fuming Goblin Elder skulked from the office.

As soon as the door closed behind the Elder – and that walking stick was well and truly out of reach – Ragnarok let loose an evil laugh.

It was good to be Chief!


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> **Disclaimer: this fic is for personal enjoyment not for profit. The characters and worlds belong to their respective owners.**   
>  **Props go to Jellyash, who made a suggestion that I had not considered, and that I think will add a new dimension to the story so I'm putting the foundations now. Thanks to all of you who left kudos, and especially to all of you who commented: you made my day.**

Goblin magic was based in blood...why else would their society be so bloodthirsty when they had reached quite a level of sophistication. It was something that repelled wizards, who had turned their back on blood magic and labelled it as dark, and could possibly be one of the reasons behind the conflict between their two races. Yet the fact remained that Goblins respected blood.

And the new society that had risen in the last two-hundred years in the Tribal Isles was full of it!

The Daimyos were now surrounded by cities. Towns spotted the landscape. Villages had popped up all over. And that bloodthirsty nature that threw Clan against Clan had been refined, not eradicated. Clans had come together and formed Shinobi Villages, which were trading hubs, law enforcement across the land, and a symbol of peace (strangely).

Tracker could not believe how fast the Tribal Isle had evolved. He was over one-thousand years old: He had seen Hogwarts founded and watched how that had effected Wizarding Society (namely made them a more arrogant pest and thorn the Hoard's collective side), as well as how long it took for others to copy it and build other schools. It had then took another two-hundred years for the Ministries to be created.

Yet in the Tribal Isles, it had taken ten years after the founding of the first Shinobi Village for others to be created. With protected areas in place, craftsmen flocked to these safe zones. Trading routes opened. Governments rose. Tracker gave an evil chuckle as he realised that in sixty years the chakra-users had reached the same level of civilisation as the magic-users, and that was without the development of the muggle world to serve as a catalyst.

Tracker was somewhat curious as he entered the South Gate of _Konohagakure_ , the Shinobi Village of _Hi no Kuni_ (Fire Country). This was apparently the First Shinobi Village, the starting point of all the change in the Tribal Isles. It was spoken of fondly by most civilians that he had met on his journey, as it had a philosophy called the Will of Fire, and a great grounding in teamwork.

But it _was_ a Shinobi Village, so Tracker made sure his blood based glamour was flawless – making him appear as short stocky man in his late fifties, carrying all his worldly possessions in a bundle on his stooped back – and that his paperwork was in order. 

When he got past the friendly but combat-ready Gate-guards – and hidden elite on the walls that most visitors probably never realised were watching them - he immediately made his way to what the civilians called the Hokage Tower, and used a low resonance siren spell (after biting his tongue) to get the secretary to move the Hokage's schedule around to give him the next appointment.

An old man was sat in the Hokage chair, wearing a large red and white hat and robes. Liver-spots dotted the man's face and he looked weary. Despite the guards Tracker could feel in the room he decided to cut to the chase and de-activated his glamour.

“I am from the Outside” he managed to say before the guards attacked.

The guards wore formfitting black clothes with grey leather armour and white masks. They were good. But Tracker was one of the best warriors the Goblin Nation had produced, and he had the pride of the Goblin Nation resting on his left arm. He held the guards off until an obvious stalemate was reached, then the guards vanished with a single wave from their unworried aged leader.

“From the Outside you say” the old man murmured, he had a pipe in his mouth and chewed on it thoughtfully. “I have heard many tales of witches, but none described one such as you.”

Tracker gently laid his bundle on the couch in the room and suppressed a grimace at being compared to the vermin his race had to deal with daily, he remained close to the bundle as he answered, “I am not a witch, I am a Goblin. Our Nation actually controls the finances of the Wizarding World.”

The pipe was puffed. “And what brings you here? The Clans told the story of the formation of _Kakusare ta kuni_ to their children faithfully so that it would not be forgotten. The Shodaime Hokage decreed that the knowledge should at least be known to the current Hokage so that Konohagakure would always be prepared. _Kakusare ta Kuni_ was made and sealed away so that the witches need not fear our shinobi. What do we have of interest to you, that you would cross the boundary?” 

A subtle shift in the guards showed that the knowledge was still not common place. A relief for Tracker, as while the Goblins would welcome the destruction of the Wizarding World it was unlikely that the chakra-users would stop at just the wizards if they ever overcame the barrier. And the chakra-users would be a more formidable foe that the lazy stick waving magic-users would ever be. There was a reason so few Witches or Wizards earned the Hoard's respect.

Tracker stood straighter and fiercely met the Hokage's eyes. “One of our clients was Lady Lily Potter, of Potter Lily-dono in your way, and she charged us with the safe keeping of the Potter Estate which includes the health of the Potter Heiress.”

Tracker noticed the Hokage's swift glance at the bundle on the couch, but ignored it and continued, “this was a duty that we failed. We allowed a high ranking Wizard – who was a trusted colleague of her parents' – to place the child with her kin after her parents' deaths, and they abused her. We removed her and have done everything magically possible to heal her. Now we need to place her with new guardians, and the blood inheritance ritual said that she had kin here.”

“Impossible” the Hokage denied, “no shinobi can pass through the wards.”

“One did” Tracker was adamant, he pulled out the paperwork and passed it over to the Hokage, “a Haruno Ryota.”

The Hokage stood and went into a back room, returning with a black scroll, “Haruno Ryota. His family were silk merchants and one of the first to settle in Konoha after its founding. He joined the Academy, graduated with an average ranking at eleven. He was injured six months later and his chakra system was destroyed. He joined the archive division and disappeared while assisting in the testing of an experimental jutsu for teleportation. With his chakra system in the state it was it could be possible that he went through the wards with the teleportation jutsu.”

“A blood test would confirm what I am telling you” Tracker stated.

“It would” the Hokage agreed, a small nod was sent in the direction of a shadowed corner.

One of the guards instantly appeared next to the bundle. Tracker tensed, ready for battle, but the guard was gentle as the covers were pulled back and blood taken. Then the guard disappeared.

There was silence in the office as the Hokage read through the information Tracker had provided. Everything was in that scroll: history of the Potter line, finances, situation surrounding the Lord and Lady Potters' deaths, the injuries that the Potter Heiress had suffered. All the treatment she had undergone, the medical assessments of her magic, and the family tree shown by the inheritance test. Normally such information would never be given to one not related to the client, but Tracker knew that the Heiress would not be accepted into this village on goodwill alone. The Hokage – for all the benevolence his position allowed – was a military leader, and the Heiress came from the chakra-users ancient enemy. There was a reason that Tracker had come here instead of leaving the Heiress with her relatives. 

The guard came back while the Hokage was still reading and laid a piece of paper on his desk. The Hokage glanced at it, nodded, and continued reading. When he finished he gave a sigh of acceptance.

“The blood work confirms that Potteru-hime is distantly related to Haruno Kiyoshi and Haruno Sakura. The way her core has formed should cause no problems in our society. Her history suggests that you want her to remain hidden, so I would suggest a name change. Haruno is in her bloodline and is appropriate, but what for her personal name?” the Hokage questioned.

“Tsutsuji means Azalea in your tongue” Tracker suggested, hoping the Hokage wouldn't continue his line of questioning. He had managed to get out of naming all twenty-six of the children his wife bore him, he wasn't going to start debating names now.

The Hokage nodded and wrote something down. “Summon Haruno Kiyoshi and his wife.” A guard vanished. “Being from the Outside will draw a target on her back. I would suggest hiding her history. We will say that she is from a minor trading town, and we can explain her magic as a passive Kekkai Genkai from her father's side.”

As he had no problems with this, Tracker nodded.

“Tsutsuji-hime has considerable Estate, what will happen with this?” the Hokage asked.

“We are obeying the contracted wishes of the Lady Potter at this time” Tracker responded. “Once the Potter Heiress is seventeen she will be named Lady Potter and can direct her accounts. At this point she can leave her money in our bank, or have all her assets liquedated and moved here. However she will need to come to our bank to do this. Also the Potter Heiress has a considerable sum of money settled on her for her care until she becomes Lady Potter. This amount is £1000 per month, which is 200 Galleons, or 179,126 ryo. We will round it up to 180,000 ryo for convenience.”

“From her family's history she will probably become a shinobi, do you have any problems with this?” the Hokage questioned.

Tracker shook his head, “the Potter Heiress may do as she wills.” He reactivated his glamour.

“Ah good” the Hokage smiled. 

Silence descended in the office until a timid knock came twenty minutes later. At the Hokage's call to enter two adults slowly walked in to the room.

The first was a man with brunette hair cut short, and the same eyes as Lady Potter. His skin was tanned and he was built like a bear. His mouth was drawn tight with worry as he glanced at the Hokage, but the deep laugh lines around his eyes reassured Tracker that this was a man more inclined to smiles than frowns.

Next to him stood a dainty woman with pink hair in an elaborate plait and lime green eyes. She was pale, with a petite figure, but the way she stood showed a large personalty.

“You called for us, Hokage-sama?” the woman demurred.

The Hokage nodded firmly, “yes. This man comes from a trading village just on the edge of _Hi no Kuni,_ {The couple gave each other mystified looks, clearly wondering how this concerned them} and he was asked to bring Tsutsuji-chan to Konoha in hopes of finding kin for her here. Blood matches have confirmed that Tsutsuji–chan is a distant cousin of yours, Hiroshi-san. Her great-grandfather was your great-uncle, Haruno Ryota. We had believed that he died while assisting in the testing of an experimental teleportation jutsu, but it seems that the jutsu was partially successful, and he was transported somewhere other than the designated location and lost his memories in the process.”

As soon as the Hokage had said that he was related to the young girl on the couch, Hiroshi had begun inching closer to her to take a closer look. Tracker was amused, and relieved to see the man already becoming attached.

“Y-you want us to take her in, Hokage-sama?” Hiroshi's wife gasped, a hand coming to her throat in a defensive gesture. She was clearly uneasy at denying the Hokage his request.

Her husband was not on the same page. “Of course we will.” He stated, “She's family.” 

His wife shook her head and visibly pulled herself together, her hands clasped in front of her too tightly to be as relaxed as her face attempted to portray her to be. “Hokage-sama, our business was destroyed in the Kyuubi attack. The loan we took to rebuild it leaves us with very little. Does the child not have other relations to take her in, who are more financially settled?”

Tracker watched the woman carefully, determined that the honour of the Goblin Hoard would be restored and that the Potter Heiress would be left with capable guardians. He had not foreseen any financial impediment when the couple entered the room: the woman was dressed in a silk kimono that was of modest style and with very discreet mending in some areas, the man had rougher clothes but Tracker had assumed that he allowed his wife to handle the shop-front and instead did the more harsh areas of work. Now he was adjusting his judgement, as it was entirely possible that those clothes were the finest that the woman currently owned and she wore them to encourage custom into the business, as a shoddily dressed seamstress would not fill a patron with confidence. No matter how he read her body-language, Tracker could not find any trace of ill will, only concern that their family would be unable to provide for another member and pain at denying her husband the chance to raise his kin.

The Hokage apparently agreed with his assessment. “Tsutsuji-chan's parents were murdered when she was fifteen months old. She was put with her Aunt – her mother's sister – but was horribly abused. Our medical-shinobi have spent many hours healing her physically, however to heal mentally she would need a real home...not one of our orphanages that are sadly filled to capacity and could not help her in this.”

Hiroshi's whole body had tensed through the explanation, any attempt – however foolish in a room full of shinobi – to casually move towards his cousin forgotten, as he openly placed himself at her side, and towered protectively over her diminished form. His wife meanwhile was shaking with rage that she made no attempt to conceal.

“Of course we will welcome her into our home, Hokage-sama. Some people are just animals! If I ever get my hands on her Aunt...”she trailed off through gritted teeth, muttering threats under her breath.

The Hokage gave a warm smile, “the Aunt has been incarcerated and will soon be justly punished for her crimes. And the Uncle was killed resisting arrest while Tsutsuji–chan was being rescued. They will not be a problem. Also, her father was a wealthy man with a passive Kekkai Genkai which Tsutsuji-chan has inherited. A stipend has been left for her care.”   
The couple immediately protested receiving any money for the care of their kin.

“There is no need to take away from her inheritance” the woman implored. “We'll find the money from somewhere.”

Tracker stepped forward to curb this line of protest: it was only right that a parent leave their offspring in a financially secure situation, no parent in their right mind would want their child to do without simply for the sake of pride. The Lord and Lady Potter's generosity with the Potter Heiress' stipend was one of the reasons that the Goblin Hoard acknowledged them...that, and the Lady Potter was a ruthless woman when the situation called for it, and the Lord Potter had had the foresight to marry her.

“In monetary terms Tsutsuji-chan's inheritance is 1,343,447,700 ryo. And like most old nobles the majority of her wealth is in land and property, its worth 17,267,781,104 ryo I believe.” He informed them.

The woman's knees gave out from under her in shock and she stared at nothing. Hiroshi merely breathed the word “hime” and looked down at his new cousin in disbelief.

Tracker turned a fierce gaze on the Hokage, “I believe that the Heiress will be adequately cared for.” More threat than statement.

“Indeed she will, I will ensure it” the Hokage confirmed.

Tracker gave the old man an acknowledging nod, “A member of my Clan will come when she turns eleven to teach her her responsibilities, ready for her coming of age.” And to make sure that she was not being abused again.

Sharp eyes met his from a wrinkled face, “I would expect nothing less.”

With nothing more to say Tracker walked towards the door and activated his portkey once he was out of sight of the Haruno family. The honour of the Goblin Hoard whole once more, and a little girl with loving family for the first time in four years.

* * *

Sarutobi leaned back in his chair and pondered over the meeting long after the Harunos that left his office.

The 'Goblin' was a very capable warrior to have held four of his ANBU to a stalemate, even if they were fresh recruits straight out of training (he was the _Hokage_ , he did not need a bodyguard). And it made Sarutobi cautious. The Goblin was an elder, so who knew what the members of his race in their prime could do. 

Fortunately the Goblin did not ask too much, merely the loving embrace of kin for a child who had been too long without. However the girl was a witch, and could potentially be a spy, which was why he had already sent the Harunos to the Yamanakas to have Tsutsuji-hime's mind read under the guise of psychological help.

It would warm his heart to provide the girl with aid simply because it was in her best interest to do so...but he was Hokage, and he had done many things he despised to fulfil his duties as Hokage. 

Having a witch available for study was invaluable, as he had to assume that it was only a matter of time before the magic-users tried to finish the job they started with the barrier. However it was in Konoha's best interest that the witch be loyal to the village. A loyal witch would willingly allow the study of her magic, a captive one would require resources to contain and would not provide nearly as much information.

Also there was the considerable wealth that she brought with her. Konoha was still in an economic slump from the Kyuubi attack and the diplomatic incident with Kumogakure, which had been seen as a sign of Konoha's weakness. Encouraging Tsutsuji-hime to become part of the shinobi forces would tie her and her wealth to the village. Due to new laws no student graduated the academy younger than twelve, so even if she did die in the field her wealth would remain with her new family, if she requested as such when the Goblin came once she turned eleven.

He would have to hide her origins from Danzo. But that was an easy enough task to complete as those in this office were loyal only to him, and even the girl did not know of her magic if the records were to be believed.

With an aggrieved sigh he used a small katon jutsu to burn all the documents to a cinder, and swore his ANBU to silence.

If his old friend asked he'd hint that the girl's family had crossed paths with Kirigakure hunting parties.

And for now all that was left to do was to watch and to wait...and to hope that he had not made a mistake by not killing her when he had the chance.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for the long wait. I hope you enjoy this chapter. Please comment.


	4. Chapter 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> **Disclaimer: this work is for personal pleasure not for profit, all characters and worlds belong to their creators.**

A child can be one of the most selfish creatures in the world, and their cruelty can be beyond compare, yet they do it all with such innocence that it is frightening.

Haruno Sakura had always known that she was her parents' world. They always made as much time for her as possible, cooked her favourite meals, took her to the park, and let her choose what restaurant they ate at when they went out.

Yet she was a child. She saw that her parents did not buy her new clothes, the latest toy, and that they lived in a run down area of Konoha. She did not see her mother painstakingly mending and altering her own clothes for her daughter's use, or the expensive hair clip that they had bought her when they saw her admiring it. She did not realise that it was unusual for a child to have the master bedroom, while her parents slept on a pull-out sofa in the living room (even if that room was barely big enough for her bed, wardrobe, desk and toy chest). She heard the jeers of the other children about her second hand clothes and plain bento. She never heard her mother softly crying at night when it all became too much, or her father asking around for extra work to make ends meet. She never realised that both her mother and father did without lunch to save just that little bit more money so that her future was secure.

She was a child, and they were determined that she would know nothing of the hardships they faced.

Sakura, though, was observant in the ways that mattered to children.

When her parents brought a new child home and made her give up half the space in her room, she noticed. She also noticed that they started having boring foods that the new girl – her cousin, she was told – would barely eat, yet when she asked (demanded) nice food she was told off, as 'Tsutsuji-chan' could not eat that. She noticed that the clothes bought for her cousin were nicer than hers, the toys were newer, the bedding of finer quality. She noticed that her cousin's bento had more variety than hers, and her parents asked her cousin where she would like to eat when they went to the restaurant now, not Sakura.

Sakura hated her cousin, who was stealing her parents away.

The girl was weird. She was too pale, too skinny, her eyes too bright. She slept under her bed rather than on it (and because of that bed, Sakura had lost her toy chest and desk). The bedroom now smelled like pee as the girl kept wetting herself at night, and when she wasn't doing that she was screaming and waking Sakura up...and her parent only comforted her cousin, never her. She only spoke gibberish, didn’t understand a word they were saying, nor could she read or write. Her hair was too short, and covered in dandruff and other stuff, as she screeched and scratched whenever Sakura's parents tried to get her to have a bath. She ate with her hands, and refused to play when they all went to the park. And she stared at them all silently for hours on end.

Sakura was thankful that they looked nothing alike and that her cousin did not go to school, as it was the only time she had away from her. But there Sakura had her bullies, so she more often than not spent the day in tears.

Eventually, months after Tsutsuji's arrival, Sakura began acting out. If her cousin had nicer clothes then she'd cover them in stains, she'd tear apart her toys or outright take them as her own, she'd put bugs in Tsutsuji's bento to watch her scream. 

But her cousin did not react how she wanted. Tsutsuji cleaned not only her own stained clothes, but the whole household's as well, earning her praise from Sakura's mother. She never tried to bring Sakura's parents attention to the missing toys, but fixed the broken ones. And she just calmly removed the bugs from her food and ate a small portion, like the bugs were never there.

At night, as she got better at hiding the nightmares, Tsutsuji would sweep the whole house in silence, clean the bathroom after giving herself a quick wash, and make both the breakfast and the bentos. She eagerly followed Sakura's mother to work and helped around the shop. And Sakura's parents (trying to curtail Tsutsuji from falling back into her old routine that she had with her abusers) gave Sakura _chores_ so she would not get lazy (and to let Tsutsuji know that in this household they were all equals).

Sakura hated her all the more.

After a year her cousin was unrecognisable from how she had been when she arrived. She had filled out, her hair was clean and reached her shoulders, she smiled more often and could often be heard humming as she assisted Sakura's mother with the cooking at night. Her reading and writing was as good as most of the children in Sakura's class, but Sakura maintained that hers was much better, and Tsutsuji spoke to them all now. Her skin was still pale, but looked healthier somehow, and she joined in when they went to the park. The other children liked Tsutsuji, saying that she was as pretty as a porcelain doll, until Sakura revealed that Tsutsuji had only recently stopped wetting the bed and the children turned on her...after all who would want to be friends with a bed-wetter. Tsutsuji still stared at them all without explanation though, especially Sakura.

Now at least they had food that Sakura liked again, they took turns choosing the restaurant, and Tsutsuji used the chopsticks so she was no longer an embarrassment. She let Sakura practise hairstyles on her and never told her off for saying what she thought like some of the girls at school. Tsutsuji let Sakura borrow her clothes and her toys, and as she got better at helping Sakura's mother at the shop she stitched designs onto Sakura's own clothes that made the other girls green with envy.

It was like having a servant, and Sakura liked that.

Then she met Ino, and with her prompting joined the Shinobi Academy, dragging her cousin along for the ride so she could show off how much better than Tsutsuji she was.

She was somewhat fond of Tsutsuji by that point, but had no idea that this decision would lose her the follower she had grown so used to, forever.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter is not meant as Sakura bashing, I am merely trying to portray how a child would react to a new child in their home that their parents seem to be favouring above them, while also condensing Tsutsuji's healing so as to get to the real story faster.


	5. Chapter 5

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> **Disclaimer: This work was created for personal enjoyment, not profit. Obviously the characters and worlds are not mine.**
> 
>  
> 
> **If you think you are reading the same chapter again, that's because I took this chapter down the same day I initially posted it when I realised that I had only covered half a day in Tsutsuji's life. Naturally I wasn't satisfied with that. So I've redone the chapter and added quiet a bit. Hope you like it.**

Tsutsuji was terrified of going to ninja school.

She had been safely encased in the love of her new family since she arrived in Konoha, and all interactions with a lot of new people were overseen by her new Aunt and Uncle, at either the shop or the park. But this was a lot of new people without her Aunt or Uncle to hide behind. The last time this had happened was when she attended school back with the Dursleys, and everyone had been cruel: from the children who poked and pushed her, to the teachers who glared at her and spoke to her only in a tone that said she was in trouble.

But Sakura really wanted Tsutsuji to go to ninja school with her, and Tsutsuji didn't want to disappoint her. Sakura was really nice. They shared clothes and Sakura teased her just like those siblings she'd seen at the park. They even played Princess a lot, though Sakura always got to be the Princess (a fact that pleased Tsutsuji because she thought she would ruin the game if she had to be Princess, she had no idea how). 

Aunt had said that ninjas protected the village, and Tsutsuji wanted to protect her family, so Tsutsuji would be brave. She could do that. She'd slept on a bed, she'd eaten the same food as a normal person, she allowed herself free time. She could be brave and go to ninja school.

“Hurry up, slowpoke!”

It would be easier without Sakura's new friend...Ino, if Tsutsuji remembered right.

Sakura had met the girl a few months ago when playing at the park. The girl gave Sakura a ribbon that she wouldn't share, but that was okay because Tsutsuji wouldn't share her dog plush either. Now Sakura wanted to go to ninja school because Ino was going.

Ino was nice, and she looked like that nice man that Tsutsuji went to see once a week, who always smiled and gave her a flower to take home. But Ino sounded a lot like Aunt Petunia had – shrill and nagging – and Tsutsuji was scared that she'd notice Tsutsuji's 'Taint', and then the Harunos would get rid of her. 

She always attempted to stay boring when Ino was there – like she had at the Dursleys – so the girl wouldn't pay more attention to her than necessary. However this morning Ino had already complained about her dull t-shirt and pants - “Don't you want to look nice for your first day of school. You look like a _boy!_ ” - so she had to stop doing things that made the girl notice her...like staying rooted to the spot and not passing through the gate of the Shinobi Academy, trembling like a leaf.

Tsutsuji drew in a deep breath and forced her right leg to move forwards...and now her left...right...left...right, left, right, left. Okay, that was a normal walk, now to smile. Ino was already turning away, nattering to Sakura, so job done.

Tsutsuji let her smile drop. 

Sakura had wanted to be in the same class as Ino at the ninja school, but that class had started a year ago. Luckily the first years at ninja school were a lot of academics and physical conditioning, so Sakura (and Tsutsuji, by extreme encouragement from Sakura) had done the academics at home and had promised to train really hard after school. For some reason the school had accepted this and allowed both Sakura and Tsutsuji into the same class as their age group.

But Sakura already had a friend, and Tsutsuji didn't. Friends were different from cousins, Sakura liked Ino's company better. Tsutsuji had no idea how to make a friend, she had never had one before. The nice man who looked like Ino said that all you had to do was go over and say hello, but Tsutsuji didn't think that worked for people with the 'Taint'. It certainly hadn't before.

So Tsutsuji was going to have no friends, and Sakura would leave her to play with Ino because she liked her better, and Tsutsuji was going to be _alone_. Tsutsuji almost burst into terrified tears, but her time at the Dursleys had taught her that tears made things worse, so she viciously rubbed her eyes and followed her cousin's retreating form to her class.

By the time she caught up, Ino and Sakura were already in the class talking to the teacher. She quietly joined her cousin, as Ino took a seat and the teacher called the attention of the class. Tsutsuji gulped at the many faces staring at her.

“Alright. We have two new students that are starting the academy today. Please make them feel welcome.” The silver haired man announced, he turned to the two cousins and continued in a quieter tone, “I'm Mizuki-sensei, if you need any help just let me know. Now why don't you introduce yourselves.”

Sakura instantly stepped forward. “Hi. I'm Haruno Sakura. I like pretty dresses, flowers and playing in the park. Nice to meet you.” She ended the introduction with a bow.

Okay, now it was Tsutsuji's turn...what should she say?! All those people's attention was solely on her. She could feel her throat tightening in fear, and all the faces were starting to go blurry. But she had to say _something!_ Mizuki-sensei was giving her a funny look (concerned), would he kick her out of school for this. She slowly opened her mouth.

“That's my cousin Haruno Tsutsuji. She's shy. She likes cooking, sewing, and stuffed animals.”

Saved by Sakura, Tsutsuji loved her cousin. Her heart rate began to return to normal and it felt like she could breathe again.

“Lovely, girls. Now why don't you take a seat, and we'll begin the lesson.” Mizuki-sensei encouraged with a smile.

Sakura easily smiled back and made her way to the saved seat next to Ino. Tsutsuji barely managed an upwards curl of her lips, and slowly made her way to the deserted desk at the back of the class, as Ino hadn't saved a second seat for her.

Class began with few surprises. Tsutsuji had been home-schooled for so long she had been unsure what to expect, but so far this experience was similar to when she attended school at the Dursleys, only her classmates and teacher were nicer to her, and she had never had a history lesson where they'd been told how a foreign leader was executed in detail before.

She was beginning to relax when the door to the class was slammed open and a child was thrown into the classroom. A collective groan went through the class as the blond boy stood up and yelled at the now closed door “YOU WON'T BE ABLE TO DISRESPECT ME ONCE I'M HOKAGE, DATTEBAYO!”

“SHUT UP AND SIT DOWN, YOU MENACE!” Mizuki-sensei roared, doing a fine impression of Uncle Vernon when he'd had a really bad day. Tsutsuji subconsciously hunched her shoulders and made herself as small a target as possible.

The blonde boy trudged up the stairs, ignoring muttered insults by the class, and made his way to an empty seat...right next to Tsutsuji.

Tsutsuji was horrified. The boy had a big scowl on his face, he didn't look nice at all. He had bruises on his arms and legs, and was covered in dirt. His clothes were threadbare, and he smelled. Tsutsuji moved her chair away from him as he dropped into the seat beside her.

Mizuki-sensei continued the class with occasional glares at their desk, and Tsutsuji dropped lower and lower in her chair trying to not draw more of the teacher's negative attention.

The boy kept glancing at her, and every now and then attempted to talk to her, but Tsutsuji resolutely ignored him and he eventually gave up. 

His constant grumbles kept her acutely aware of his presence until the lunch gong rang, and she did not have to worry about avoiding another of his attempts to talk to her because with a loud cry of “FREEDOM!” he was over the desk, and out the door. It was a little bit like being next to a hurricane, as his movements caused all her notes to scatter and a couple of classmates to fall over as he had pushed past them. Tsutsuji scurried to gather her notes before they could fall out the open window, wondering at the lack of awareness in the boys actions: did he not care about his classmates at all?

“Tsutsuji. Come on, it's time for lunch. Oka-san gave you the bentos” Sakura called impatiently, pulling Tsutsuji from her musings. Sakura was actually tapping her foot and crossing her arms, making Tsutsuji worried.

“Coming” came her subdued reply, hoping to appease the cousin she had somehow upset.

As soon as she started moving, Sakura and Ino began walking outside, leaving Tsutsuji to trail behind them yet again.

“You're cousin is really weird” Ino complained, just loud enough for Tsutsuji to catch. She didn't think the girl had meant for her to hear her, but understanding what Uncle Vernon had been muttering about had saved her from many a beating so Tsutsuji had pretty sensitive ears.

“I know, right” Sakura moaned, “but she's my cousin, I have to look after her.” Sakura cast a quick glance back and gave Tsutsuji a smile. “Besides, she's not that bad.”

Tsutsuji felt the big grin cross her face. Sakura was the best. She broke into a little jog to catch up to the two girls. She could survive ninja school, she just wouldn't think of anything nasty...like that boy.

***

That wasn't so easy.

No one would happily change seats with her, and to stop the grumbling Mizuki-sensei said that their seats were now permanent. So she sat next to the boy everyday, listening to him rambling about ramen and Hokage and pranks.

And everyone had something to say about it.

“My parents say to stay away from him.”

“My oka-san said that he's a monster and if you talk to him he'll eat your soul.”

“I heard he killed someone.”

“He's always getting into trouble, be careful now you're sitting next to him.”

“Can't you just move to another class. Tou-san said his type make the people around them as horrible as they are.” 

But Tsutsuji couldn't move class. Sakura was in this one and she wasn't going to be separated from her cousin. So she endured the comments, and ignored the boy, and tried to enjoy herself.

The academy spent all morning on academics and all afternoon on exercise. Sakura was quickly becoming the best in the class at the academic side of the course, while Tsutsuji was pretty much average. However the physical side was where Tsutsuji stood out. Mizuki-sensei encouraged them to play games like tag and hide-and-seek, and had happily told her that it was really good that only a few of the clan kids could get her. But Tsutsuji noticed that the boy – Naruto – was never caught, by anyone, and yet Mizuki-sensei did not congratulate him. Then again, Mizuki-sensei had soon sent the boy somewhere else for these lessons, so maybe another teacher was giving him advanced instruction. Either way, it meant that her afternoon hours were Naruto-free, so Tsutsuji wasn't complaining. They were also taught gymnastics and how to fall properly, which Tsutsuji loved: it was like flying when she was thrown, told to do trick, and then had to land so she'd roll to her feet. She felt like a superhero. Unlike Sakura who buried herself in her books, Tsutsuji practised even at home.

But while she tried her best, ignoring Naruto was not possible. He was loud and played pranks on everyone, and sat next to him she was the perfect target so she was watching him constantly. She noticed things like the fact that he wore the same clothes day after day, that he was always bruised and dirt covered, that all the adults give him the same nasty look. It was like one of the boys Dudley had been friends with who was always getting into fights, and ate his lunch before arriving at school, and would then con lunch off some of his classmates by pretended that his mum forgot to pack it. She often saw Naruto asking the other students for lunch, so he must be like that as well. Her Aunt Petunia had called that boy a troublemaker. Naruto must be a troublemaker as well.

But was it normal for a shop assistant to refuse to let a troublemaker buy any of their stuff, like Tsutsuji had noticed when she went to the store with her Aunt one day? Was it normal for Naruto to get a different test from everyone else in the class – a _harder_ test – when he was behind everyone academically? Why did no one pick Naruto up from school, or drop him off? How come he was told time and time again to go out into the hall during class for doing something that someone else only received a mild reprimand for if they did it?

Tsutsuji didn't like it. It made her tummy feel funny, like she wanted to be sick.

She was even having nightmares now, which she hadn't had in nearly a year. Nightmares about being back at the Dursleys. About doing all those chores, and taking all those beatings. And when her Aunt Petunia told her to clean up as she wasn't having 'filthy' blood ruin her nice carpets, Tsutsuji would look in the bathroom mirror, and it was Naruto's beat up face looking back at her. Naruto's tears running down her cheeks. Naruto's voice wondering why he was treated like this.

She always woke up screaming.

She had asked the nice man that looked like Ino why she was having the nightmares again, not mentioning Naruto was in them at all. He just said that something must be reminding her about her time at the Dursleys.

She watched Naruto more closely. She saw how other students treated him, who started the fights he was involved in and who got punished for them, how the teachers reacted to him in class, and more importantly Naruto's face during all of this. The hurt that was quickly covered by anger and declarations of becoming Hokage when he was snubbed by the students, when he was punished for the fights that others started with him, and the lack of care by the teachers.

Something was wrong with all of this, but Tsutsuji was 'Tainted', so she had no idea what.

It was a mild day at the end of October when Tsutsuji got the answer that had been evading her for the seven months she had been in the academy. Naruto had been involved in the worst fight she had seen, with some older students that had managed to draw blood. Naruto had defended himself to the best of his ability, until a teacher came and stopped the fight...and then comforted the mildly bruised attackers while berating _Naruto_. 

_Naruto had a split lip, a black eye, and looked dazed. It was four on one._

When Naruto staggered off while the teacher escorted the older students to the school medic, Tsutsuji quickly followed the lone boy, leaving her hiding place behind a tree where she had been for the entire fight, unsure of what to do. She dithered around the corner of the school building while Naruto checked himself for injuries, arguing with herself as to whether he deserved what had just happened. Then he lifted his shirt to check his ribs and Tsutsuji's heart. Just. Stopped.

She could count his ribs!

There was bruising there already!

He acted like it was nothing! Pulling down his t-shirt and steadily moving on while Tsutsuji's world fell apart!

She remembered at the start of the month when Naruto had been gone for a few days. When he came back he had been more bruised than she had ever seen him, more subdued, more tired. She had smiled when Mizuki-sensei wished him a happy birthday, hoping that it would cheer the boy up as he was unnerving her. But it hadn't. Naruto had just curled in on himself even more.

Had Mizuki-sensei been _taunting_ him! Had something like this happened and Naruto had been too injured to come to school. She knew that Naruto and Mizuki-sensei didn't get along, but had Mizuki-sensei known Naruto was hurt and tried to hurt him more...and Tsutsuji had smiled at the man...and had frowned at Naruto for not being grateful for the gesture!

Tsutsuji could remember when the Dursleys had hurt her really bad and she had begged silently for someone to notice, to do something...but no one had. She remembered the teachers 'putting her in her place' and the students laughing and making her feel ten times worse.

How had she not recognised this behaviour?!

But she had, hadn’t she. That was what all the nightmares were about. Naruto was like what she used to be like, and she had become like those bullies she hated so much.  
She ran home in tears, and nothing her Aunt and Uncle could do would console her. 

She remembered the birthday dinner her Aunt had made her. All her favourite foods that must have taken ages to make, even though there was a big order that her Aunt needed to get done. Her Uncle had carved her a pretty little jewellery box, and it had her namesake painted on it, he also whispered that there was a secret compartment hidden in it that was their little secret. Her Aunt had gifted her with a hair comb that could be used as ornamentation as well as to comb her hair, it was made of metal and also had her namesake on it. Sakura gave her a handkerchief that she had embroidered her initials onto.

Tsutsuji had spent her birthday surrounded by the love of her family, but Naruto hadn't. He'd been in pain, with no one to comfort him and to tell him it was going to be alright. 

Tsutsuji didn't want to be like those mean people in her old life! She _refused_ to be like them!

But if she started to be nice to Naruto, people might notice that she was 'Tainted'. Her family might not love her anymore. She couldn't risk it.

Tsutsuji screamed into her bedspread, her relatives desperately trying to comfort her.

Her new Aunt had said that family loves family, and that nothing could change that.

Her new Uncle had said that the way her old family had treated her was _wrong_ , and that no one deserved that.

The nice man who looked like Ino said that she was never 'Tainted', that the Dursleys said that to try and make her believe what they were doing was right. _But it wasn't_. The Dursleys were the ones who were wrong.

The Dursleys are being punished for what they did _because_ it was wrong. _They_ were wrong. Anyone who treats someone like that for no reason was _wrong_. And anyone who ignores someone who is being treated like that is _just_ as wrong as the one's doing it, because it makes it seem like the one doing it is right, and that's _not true_.

Yamanaka Inoichi would congratulate her later on in the week for the breakthrough she had made in her recovery. After a year and a half of living in Konoha she finally recognised that the Dursleys were the bad ones, not her.

But this didn't matter to Tsutsuji.

The only thing that mattered was the next day, when she put a bento and a wrapped box with a frog purse in it that she had made herself, onto the table in front of Naruto.  
When she smiled and said “Hi. I'm Haruno Tsutsuji, it's nice to meet you. Happy Birthday for a while back, this present's for you. Do you want to be friends?”

When a large happy grin crossed his face and he gave her a breath stealing hug and happily proclaimed that he would be the best friend ever, and she ignored the smell of sweat and mud and hugged him back just as tight.

The only thing that mattered was that everyone was _wrong_ about Naruto, and she wasn't going to be one of them...not anymore.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope you enjoyed this chapter. Any comments and constructive criticism are welcome.
> 
> If it seems like i'm going backwards and forwards on myself, it's because i'm trying to portray Tsutsuji's indecision when it comes to Naruto. Like in the last chapter i'm not showing an adult's cruelty when I write my characters but a child's narrowed viewpoint of the world, which can be cruel. This narrowed viewpoint also shows in Tsutsuji's interactions with Sakura, as her new cousin treats her nicer than her old one Tsutsuji sees Sakura as being a lovely person and doesn't realise that some of what she does is wrong. The same goes for Sakura, who doesn't realise that she is being selfish at times, and does like her cousin which I admit showed more in this chapter than the last one.


	6. Chapter 6

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> **Disclaimer: all characters and worlds belong to their original creators. This work was made for personal entertainment, not for profit.**
> 
>  
> 
> **Sorry for not writing for so long. I believe I have previously warned that my updating wasn't to a schedule. For the past few months I've had the chose of writing fanfiction or reading fanfiction...and there are so many amazing fanfiction out there. I'm sorry, my will is weak in the face of good plots and great writing. Anyway, please enjoy.**

To say he was happy was an understatement, Naruto was ecstatic.

His first friend!

And it was one of the nicest girls in class.

He had noticed how lots of the students had tried to talk to her, only to have her back off, or give them a stare that would make them feel bad about themselves – like they had kicked a puppy – and they'd back off instead. Everyone agreed that she wasn't being mean, she was just _really_ shy, so no one was nasty to her.

But _she_ had talked to _Naruto_ , she had asked if they could be friends, she had given him Gama-chan and a yummy bento. And the next day she had brought another bento for him, and the day after that, and the day after that, and every day since they became _best friends_.

They played together at lunch. She mended his clothes and brought him _new_ ones (some of her more boyish clothes from home), she even washed his clothes for him when they became too dirty. When she learned that he had trouble reading she tried to help him, and would bring fun books from her house for them to read together. 

He was really happy at school now, despite the nasty teachers and mean students.

But she still had to go home after school, or help her Aunt in the shop, so he was alone. All alone in a dark apartment – because no one would fix the lights and he didn't know how – that smelt like a back alley dumpster because he had no idea how to clean it, with no heating or hot water, and no edible food. His apartment had strong locks on the door and bars on the window, not to keep him in like it had been when he lived in the orphanage, but to keep people out. He had woken up in the hospital too many times to sleep comfortably without all his locks in place and booby traps set. And even then he could still hear the screamed insults and rocks hitting the outside walls, or bodies slamming against his door. His dreams were filled with these sounds, and he even heard it on a constant loop when he was awake: lots of voices telling him that he was a monster and was worthless, that he would be better off dead, lots of sounds that showed the effort people were willing to go to in an attempt to harm him.

Except for when his _friend_ spoke, cutting through the din with her warm voice and free smiles and conviction that he didn't deserve what was happening to him. With her he didn't need to be loud to try and drown it out himself, he could just sit quietly and listen to her gentle humming as he attempted _yet again_ one of the meditation exercises that the class had been taught while he was banished to the hallway.

Not that he wasn't loud still anyway: if all the people thought that they'd hear him before they saw him, it let him sneak away that much easier when he truly had to.

However what truly delighted Naruto was the occasional weekend when his friend wasn't needed at the shop and she'd come to the park with her family. She'd let him know as soon as she entered class on Friday if she would be there that weekend, and the instant she got to the park she'd run into the tree-line and meet him. They'd spend all day hunting bandits (finding frogs), scouting enemy spies (finding birds and then following a specific one), exploring strange civilisations (climbing trees and moving from branch to branch, or wading through the rushes of the small swamp), capturing targets (catching fireflies), or rescuing a princess from an enemy strong-hold surrounded by highly trained shinobi and angry war-lord (getting Gama-chan down from an extra tall tree that was surrounded by thorn-filled bushes and an aggressive badger). His friend would then pull out an extra large bento that they'd share part of and she'd let him take the rest to his apartment, where the smell would linger and comfort him until it was time for school again.

Not that he always went, even with his new friend there. If the people knew he was there everyday then they knew where to find him everyday. It was better that they had to guess, there was less chance of him getting hurt that way.

***

Tsutsuji danced around her and Sakura's bedroom as she wrapped her obi around her waist and put her birthday comb in the neat bun on her head. She loved helping at the shop. All those bright colours and beautiful women and pretty patterns. And Tsutsuji would help the beautiful women chose the best colours and nicest patterns to make them even more beautiful then before.

She was also saving scraps of fabric to make Naruto a festival kimono for his next birthday and was going to ask her Aunt and Uncle if he could come to the Kyuubi Festival with them, as it was soo much fun last year and Naruto had said that he had never been to one, even though it was on his birthday like a huge party just for him...but that was months away yet, so she needed that time to finish his gift. 

Before that she was going to ask if he could come to her family birthday dinner in two weeks. She was going to be _nine_ , and Naruto didn't have a family so as her best friend it was only right that he come to hers, because she was the closest thing to family that he had. 

“Why are you going to the shop?” Sakura whined from her seat in front of the vanity table, taking up the whole mirror and unknowingly forcing Tsutsuji to use her reflection in the window to check her appearance. “You should come with me to Ino's, we're going to play dress up.”

Tsutsuji hugged her cousin from behind, “I play dress up with Naruto every day.” It was one of the few games she knew of going into the friendship, from watching her cousin and Ino. As neither she nor Naruto had had a friend before, _she_ was somehow the more experienced from the little bits she had observed. Helping their friend look their best was Sakura and Ino's favourite game...and Naruto had needed someone to play dress up with for ages if his clothes said anything. They also played Princess when she mended his clothes (and had never told Naruto he was the Princess), and Medic-Nin when she cleaned his cuts and bruises for him. Naruto also said that his apartment was a mess, so she needed for him to meet her Aunt and Uncle so they would know who he was, and they would let her go to his home and play House.

“Urgh, _Naruto._ Why do you even play with him, no one likes him!” Sakura grumbled, shaking Tsutsuji off. “You were my cousin _first_ , Ino should be your friend.” She glared at Tsutsuji through the mirror.

“Naruto is really nice, and kind, and sweet, and he sings my favourite songs when I have a headache...and when I was ill after the ino-ino-incul- _urgh injections_ last month he tried extra hard to take lots of good notes for me in class.” Tsutsuji defended, cheeks puffing and going red in indignation, more obvious with her pale skin tone. “Ino is _your_ friend, Naruto is mine. Friends and cousins are different anyhow. You can have lots of friends, but only so many cousins. So there!” She stuck out her tongue at the end to enforce her point.

Sakura looked down guiltily, “you were really bad after the inoculations, weren't you.” She murmured.

Bad didn't cut it. Tsutsuji had been nearly bedridden. It was only her determination to be there for Naruto if _he_ was ill that got her through school and the surprise tests that had followed. Three quarters of the class had been expelled from the Academy after that test for bad results, they'd been merged with three other classes that been similarly affected.

“You should still be careful though.” Sakura continued, though less adamantly, “everyone thinks he's trouble.”

“Everyone are meanies!” Tsutsuji declared, “I’m going! Aunt will be waiting.” 

She swiftly left the room so as to avoid Sakura's gaze. Sakura wouldn't understand: sometimes people could be mean for no reason, and others would do what those people did without questioning why...the Dursleys and her old neighbours had proven that.

She silently fumed all the way to the shop, not noticing her Aunt gradually becoming more and more tense as the journey went on. Her Aunt's head turning anxiously from side to side as if searching for something and then lowering as if to avoid attention. Her shoulders hunching slightly and her pace picking up, until Tsutsuji had to trot at her side to keep up.

Tsutsuji watched worriedly as her Aunt fumbled with her key to the shop door to open it and nearly slammed it closed once they were through. 

“Are you okay, Aunt?” She asked as she tugged gently at the older woman's hand, “You're not ill are you?”

Her Aunt took a deep breath, then turned to her with a smile, “no, dear. It's just your Aunt being silly.”

Tsutsuji giggled at the mere suggestion, putting aside her worry, “you're not silly, Aunt.”

Her Aunt crouched down until they were of a similar height, “oh, I can be. But it'll be our secret, yes?” She tapped the side of her nose as she winked.

Tsutsuji clapped in delight, “a-huh.” She agreed.

“Well let's open shop!” Her Aunt announced with extra dramatics and arms opened wide.

“Yeah!” Tsutsuji cheered, fists pumping in the air.

...It was an unusually quiet day for the shop, that day.

...And the day after as well.

...And the weekend after that, and the weekend after that.

And apparently even during the week according to what Aunt told Uncle, who answered that he was finding it harder to find extra jobs recently.

“I don't get it.” Tsutsuji moaned over a month later through a mouthful of rice. Her bento looking more savaged then eaten.

“What?” Naruto asked, trying to stay still due to Tsutsuji leaning against him, even though he'd inhaled his bento within the first five minutes of getting it.

Tsutsuji frowned, “Eight ladies who were supposed to come to the shop, didn't. Most didn't even tell Aunt that they weren't coming. Asada-san is really nice, I don't know why she wouldn't come see Aunt, she always says that Aunt is the best!”

Naruto hummed, not knowing what to say. The only people he talked to were the old man and Tsutsuji.

“And Fudai-san cancelled her order. Aunt was happy when she got that order, it was really big!” Tsutsuji scowled, “And Ruchi-san's servant told us that Ruchi-san would be seeing a different dressmaker for her stuff from now on. Everyone is leaving us, and it's making Aunt and Uncle upset, and I _don't_ know how to help. Did you know that all the places that Uncle sometimes works for said that they didn't need his help anymore. And I heard the owner of the shop tell Aunt yesterday that she needs to look for a new place when the 'lease' ends. What's a 'lease'? Why is it ending? Why was Aunt so upset?” It was more rambling towards the end. 

Naruto still didn't have the answer to it, it all sounded like a normal day to him. But he didn't like how it was affecting Tsutsuji.

And it got worse.

Shops started refusing to sell them food, or would only give them substandard items. Restaurants would not let them on the premises. People pointed and muttered wherever they went. They were run off the park, and all the children were being very mean to both Tsutsuji and Sakura.

It was after one too many evenings of only boiled rice for dinner, that Sakura finally exploded.

“THIS IS ALL YOUR FAULT!” She screamed at Tsutsuji.

“IS NOT!” Tsutsuji shouted back.

The Haruno adults were in too much shock from their darling daughters (as far as they were concerned, both girls were their daughters) suddenly descending into massive fight in front of them, to put a stop to it.

“EVERYONE TOLD YOU TO STAY AWAY FROM HIM!”

“YOU DON'T KNOW HIM! NONE OF YOU DO!”

“HE'S TROUBLE!”

“IS NOT! HE'S NICE! EVERYONE ELSE IS BEING MEAN!”

“ALL HE DOES IS GET INTO FIGHTS-”

“OTHER PEOPLE START THOSE FIGHTS!”

“-AND HE'S SMELLY AND DIRTY-”

“THAT'S BECAUSE HE HAD NO ONE TO TAKE CARE OF HIM, HE'S BETTER NOW THAT HE'S MY FRIEND!”

“-NONE OF THE TEACHERS LIKE HIM AND HE'S THE _DEADLAST_!”

“NONE OF THOSE TEACHERS BOTHER TO TEACH HIM ANYTHING, IT'S NOT HIS FAULT HE HAS A HARD TIME KEEPING UP!”

“YOU SHOULD NEVER HAVE BECOME FRIENDS WITH UZUMAKI NARUTO!!!”

“WELL HE IS MY FRIEND! AND I'M NOT GIVING HIM UP!”

Both girls stood there panting across the low table, unable to draw enough breath to even whisper another word.

And into that tense atmosphere came soft breath of realisation, “Uzumaki Naruto!”

Both girls turned to the stunned matriarch of the Haruno Household. The woman was pale, a single hand pressed to her mouth in disbelief, tears in her pale green eyes. Then those eyes hardened and the hand lowered to revealed the woman's mouth pressed into a thin line.

“Have you made friends with Uzumaki Naruto, Tsutsuji-dear?” 

Tsutsuji gave a vigorous nod, still trying to catch her breath. Sure that her Aunt would finally end this argument that she'd been having with Sakura since she made friends with Naruto.

Her Aunt let loose a harsh sigh, “Uzumaki Naruto is trouble. He's dangerous. I don't want you going near him ever again! Promise me!”

Tsutsuji stared at her Aunt in stunned disbelief. That couldn't be right, her Aunt was supposed to back her up, and tell Sakura to leave her alone. And then Tsutsuji would ask if Naruto could come to her family birthday dinner and her Aunt would let him, and then she'd be allowed to go to his house, and they could have sleep overs. 

_Her Aunt wasn't supposed to side with Sakura!_

“Promise me, Tsutsuji!” her Aunt demanded.

Tsutsuji swallowed, “no.” It was small, with no real conviction behind it, and so much harder to say that when she had denied her class-mates and even her teachers. Tsutsuji squared her shoulders, Naruto was her friend, he deserved more than that for a defence, “No! I won't!”

Her Uncle placed a large hand on her shaking shoulder, “Honey. We're not doing this to hurt you. But you're a child and it's our job to protect you from the dangers you can't see. The Uzumaki boy _will_ hurt you. We're only telling you this because it's for your own good. Please listen to us.” His deep voice wasn't comforting like it normally was, it didn't surround her in protection like she normally felt. Despite him keeping it as soft as he could, Tsutsuji felt smothered by it.

She shook her head, unwilling to agree. “Naruto's a child, who protects him?”

“That boy does not need protecting!” Her Aunt hissed, pupils dilated and teeth bared.

Tsutsuji stepped back in fear, into her Uncle's side, who wrapped an arm around her, “Suguru, calm down, you're scaring her.” He demanded of his wife, “I know you're afraid of what he might do, but you can't explain it to her like this.”

Her Aunt was afraid?!

“What did he do?” Tsutsuji whispered.

Her Uncle sighed, “we cannot say.”

“Why not!?” Tsutsuji cried, stepping away from her Uncle as well. “Has he even done anything, or is it just that someone told you he did! Have you even seen him do something!” A horrible thought came to mind, “have you ever even seen him?” she asked in a strained plea.

“We have not seen him personally” her Aunt told her harshly, “but he is dangerous, and you will break all contact with him.”

“No!” Tsutsuji said defiantly, “if you can't tell me what he's done wrong then I’m not leaving him.”

Her Aunt refused to look at her, “say goodnight to your family, Tsutsuji, you're clearly tired and need to go to bed. You'll be grounded until you see sense.”

Tsutsuji didn't bother with goodnights. She stomped from the table to her shared room and slammed the bedroom door shut.

“I'm sorry, Tsutsuji, I didn't mean to get you in trouble!” She heard Sakura cry in horror as she went.

“Hush, Sakura. You've done nothing wrong” she heard her Aunt answer softly, “now finish your dinner and we'll play a game once we're done.”

Leaning against the thin wood of the door, Tsutsuji allowed her tears to fall, remembering the last time she was behind a thin wooden door while her relatives doted on their child and ate despite her misery.

But she wasn't giving Naruto up!

She fiercely wiped her eyes and got ready for bed. Then grabbing a blanket she didn't climb into bed...she crawled under it.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> All opinions and constructive critism are welcome. Thank you as ever for all your comments. 
> 
> As for this chapter, I can't imagine everyone in Konoha being complete assholes so there had to be something stopping people helping him. Poor Tsutsuji doesn't realise that her family is being ostracised as a result of her friendship with Naruto, and the impact that is having on her family and their business.

**Author's Note:**

> Please tell me what you think. I welcome all comments, including constructive criticism.


End file.
